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We're Tech Overflow, the podcast that explains tech to curious people. Hosted by Hannah Clayton-Langton and Hugh Williams.
16 Episodes
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Ever watched an idea go from a sentence to a working app before your coffee cools? We put that thrill to the test. First, we vibe code a meeting cost tracker live—complete with per-person salaries and a live ticker—then we hand a broad travel brief to an AI agent and let it work unsupervised. By the time we circle back, it’s assembled sourced itineraries for Florence, aligned to festivals and budgets, and laid out the tradeoffs with surprising polish. That side-by-side experience anchors a b...
Ever had an ad land so perfectly it felt like your phone must be listening? We open season two by pulling back the curtain on why targeting feels psychic without constant eavesdropping. Smart speakers like Alexa and Siri rely on wake words and short cloud trips to respond, but the real signals come from everyday behaviour: where we go, what we search, how we scroll, who we share with, and even the Wi‑Fi we share at home. We walk through the mechanics in plain English. Location is a powerhous...
Season 2 of the Tech Overflow Podcast starts on March 3, 2026. Join Hannah Clayton-Langton and Hugh Williams as they explore and demystify tech for curious listeners. This season, there'll be even more episodes on AI, three incredible interviews, and deep dives into how tech is changing the industries we all care about. Whether you're looking to learn more about how tech really works, hear great stories from inside big tech, or hear from thought-leaders who are changing the world, the ...
A single field mismatch bricked fleets of Windows machines. A simple gesture turned dating into a swipe. A major grocer is hacked and down for 45 days. A driverless car pulled up with no one inside. As we gear up for the launch of Season Two on March 3, Hannah shares her favourite stories from Season One. We went under the hood and explained tech in an accessible way for every curious listener. In this episode, we share what you've missed and our favourite parts for our loyal listeners. We s...
Three months ago we set out to make complex tech feel simple for smart people. Today, we close Season 1 with a bonus episode that’s a candid debrief on what worked, what didn’t, and the practical concepts you told us made a difference at work and in everyday life. We answer listener questions and Hugh fails to answer Hannah’s trivia questions (in a throwback to Episode 1). We start with reflections on learning the craft of podcasting while defining our mission and chemistry. Favourite episod...
A taxi pulls up with no one in the front seat. Would you get in? We invited Waymo director Nick Pelly to take us from that first uncanny moment to the engineering that makes a driverless ride feel calm, confident and, by the data, far safer than most humans behind the wheel. We walk through the full autonomy stack in plain English: how cameras, radar and LiDAR fuse into a single view of the world; how perception, prediction and planning work together to thread through double‑parked vans, nud...
Ever joined a “Guest Wi‑Fi” that looked legit, rushed through an email on the way to the airport, or reused a password because it was easier? Those small shortcuts are exactly where hacks begin. We open the curtain on how attacks actually work and, more importantly, the simple habits that stop them. We break down malware in clear terms: old‑school viruses that ride dodgy attachments, worms that replicate on their own, and Trojans disguised as free software. Then we step into the street‑level...
A fake contractor calls the help desk, a password gets reset, and suddenly a national retailer has hackers inside. We open the door on the human side of hacking—how believable stories and helpful habits become the first domino—then trace the technical steps that turn a small foothold into a system‑wide crisis. We walk through the anatomy of the Marks & Spencer breach: social engineering as the entry point, slow‑burn privilege escalation, and the moment attackers reached the Active Direct...
Finally, a podcast that explains how AI, LLMs, and ChatGPT work without any hype, fluff, or hyperbole. This episode is aimed at smart people who aren’t in tech and just want to be able to understand the basics. Join host Hannah Clayton-Langton as she discusses the topic with former Google VP and OG AI expert, Hugh Williams. We start by separating AI, machine learning, and LLMs, then explain why generative systems are not search. Instead of retrieving pages, an LLM synthesises new text using p...
What happens when a search engine is driven by a text file of hand-written rules? You get a Jaguar car ranking first for an iPod query on eBay, and you get the perfect setup for a practical tour of how AI actually creates value. We unpack the journey from brittle if-then logic to machine learning that learns relevance from real outcomes. In this episode, we break down AI, machine learning, and large language models (LLMs) in clear terms, showing how they fit together and where they differ. W...
Tinder's #swiperight gesture changed how millions decide and revolutionised dating. Tinder didn’t just explode into the public consciousness, it was also the most successful dating product in history and one of the fastest companies to $100m in revenue. Hannah and Hugh sit down with Tinder co‑founder Jonathan Badeen to trace the unexpected path from a flashcards epiphany to a cultural verb, and why #swiperight wasn’t meant to be the defining feature until a college student sent him an e...
Catastrophic software failures can seem like acts of chaos, but behind every major tech outage lies a story of human decisions, technical constraints, and cascading consequences. The July 2024 CrowdStrike incident—which Hannah describes as "the single biggest outage in the history of computing"—offers a perfect case study into what happens when critical systems fail. Hannah and Hugh dive deep into how a seemingly minor error (a file with 21 fields when the software expected 20) managed to cr...
Ever wondered what's really happening behind the scenes when you tap that app icon on your phone? From the sensors tracking your every move to the complex business decisions determining which features you get access to, the world of mobile apps is fascinating. Hannah Clayton-Langton and Hugh Williams, former VP at Google and eBay, break down why companies invest millions in app development instead of just using mobile websites. The answer lies in the incredible capabilities of your smartphon...
Ever wondered what makes your favorite apps work so seamlessly—or why others feel frustratingly clunky? The secret often lies in the mysterious realm of product management. Join Hannah Clayton-Langton and Hugh Williams to learn more. Hugh Williams, former engineering vice president at Google and eBay, and a senior engineer at Microsoft, takes us behind the digital curtain to reveal how great technology products actually get built. With insider stories from his career, Hugh explains that effe...
Ever wondered what coding actually is but felt too intimidated to ask? You're not alone. In this beginner-friendly exploration of programming basics, we break down complex technical concepts into digestible, relatable pieces. Our Episode 1 pilot explores the world of coding fundamentals through a metaphor: baking a cake. Just as bakers follow recipes with specific steps, measurements, and repeated actions, programmers create instructions for computers to follow. We also dive into the w...
Tech Overflow is coming on Monday September 15 to wherever you get your favourite podcasts! In Series 1, co-hosts Hannah Clayton-Langton and Hugh Williams demystify technology for anyone who's interested in tech. They talk about coding, product management, building apps, what happens when a site goes down, all about AI and how it works, and have a few special guests on the show. The first episode is all about coding: what is it, what do software engineers do, and will they be replaced with AI...
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